With extensive experiences in a wealth of industries, from music to business consultancy, William Higham has worked with everyone from The Rolling Stones to Walt Disney. In 2002, he founded Next Big Thing, an advisory and speaking service specialising in strategy, innovation, and futurism. His presentations connect with audiences on a personal level, leaving a positively impression that impacts all areas of their lives. For corporate clients, William’s research-driven predictions of future trends will position their brand ahead of the curve, making him the ideal speaker for conferences and industry workshops.
Upon founding Next Big Thing, William has become one of the most respected future behavioralists in the world. His consultancy service uses consumer research and analysis to identify upcoming markets, providing corporate clients with an unbeatable insight into buying behaviour. From his workshops, clients including HSBC, BBC and Mindshare have received tailored analysis of their respective markets, and the business solutions that will resonate with their target clients. When booked for events, William’s keynote speeches arm audiences with the knowledge needed to thrive in their industry, and authentically connect with consumers.
William has presented for the likes of Barclaycard and The Financial Times, booked for events all over the globe. His ability to inspire corporate excellence makes him incredibly sought after, while his strategies have revolutionised the operations of elite international brands. Able to appeal to tomorrow’s consumers, William’s understanding of an innovative workplace culture can transform a business’ prospects. His topics are research-based, a core focus of his role as Managing Director of OnePoll, an online and mobile market research agency.
Following a BA from the University of London in English Literature, William was appointed Sony’s Senior Press Officer. While leading their PR campaigns, he worked with the likes of Alice Cooper and The Stranglers, before moving to Virgin in 1991, where he created marketing strategies for The Rolling Stones. From 1995 to 1999, William worked at Universal as their Marketing Manager, further building upon his advertorial understanding. Following such a varied career, William has since become one of Europe’s most popular strategy, marketing, and futurism speakers - and Champions Speakers are honoured to be called an official speaker agent for William Higham. His practical understanding of “tomorrow’s business and consumer landscapes”, enlightens corporate audiences to the future of their market.
In May of 2021, we were lucky enough to sit down with William and discuss all things employment, innovation and preparing for a post-Covid world. Read our exclusive interview with William Higham today.
Books
The Next Big Thing: Spotting and Forecasting Consumer Trends For Profit
Agent Recommendation
"We have worked with William several times, including for a Trade Horizons Roadshow event where the client said he encouraged delegates to " rethink their approach to consumer behaviour and psychology.” Always receiving positive feedback, William uses his expertise on innovations and trends to help businesses create future-proof strategies."
William Higham's official speaking topics are listed below.
- Four ways to prepare for a post-COVID future
- Meet the household of the future
- Reaching the post-pandemic consumer
- A trip to tomorrow's world
- The community spirit revolution
- Anybody can innovate!
- Welcome to the workplace of tomorrow
- How to thrive on the high street
- How to reach Gen Y, Gen Z and Gen Alpha
Official Feedback from In-Person & Virtual Events
Feedback from Virtual Events:
During the COVID-19 pandemic, William attended many virtual events, booked as the exciting guest speaker. Read the feedback he has received below.
"The session went really well and we are more than happy. Really appreciate you recommending him, and making the session happen for us." - Msizi, Saica
Official Feedback from In-Person & Virtual Events
Feedback from In-Person Events:
William is regularly booked to engage audiences at in-person events, read his latest feedback below.
"William was thought provoking, had an engaging style and certainly set an agenda and context for change. The presentation definitely fitted in with the tone and context we were aiming for, so certainly pleased with the brief. Many thanks to you and William, it was great working with you both." - Mike, Philips
"His insights into the attitudes & behaviour of UK consumers proved highly useful." - Wayne, BBC
"Let me start off by saying Will was amazing. We had a few technical issues during his presentation and in fact two of his videos didn’t play despite us checking these. He continued on without these playing and carried this off perfectly we couldn’t have asked for more of Will. He then went on to do a piece for camera and network with our delegates when a lot of speakers would have just wanted to escape the nightmare scenario, so please pass on our sincere thanks to him." - Vanessa
“Will has the unique skill of being able to identify those trends which are important and those which are just fads, then translating them into a commercial opportunity for your business.” - Alex, Head of Insight, Sainsbury’s
“Will’s talk was a great way to start our strategy conference. He brought new, provocative insights into evolving consumer behaviours, inspiring the audience to think of new ways to serve tomorrow’s consumer.” - Matt, Director of Strategy & Business Transformation, Primark
"William’s presentation was extremely high standard. I look forward to working with him again." - Amy, EMAP Conferences
“William gave us great insights into how consumer attitudes are changing, and how companies will need to adapt to better appeal to tomorrow’s new ‘smart’ shopper.” - Michaela, Senior Editor, Financial Times Global Conferences
“Will offered a unique perspective on how companies can remain competitive in the 21st century, in a compelling, entertaining and convincing manner: encouraging delegates to rethink their approach to consumer behaviour.” - Jim, Department for International Trade, South West
"It was a great pleasure to work with such a professional speaker as William Higham." - Birgit, Baltic Conferences
"We hired William Higham for two events as part of the Trade Horizons Roadshow, which ran across the South West in Summer 2018. This series of events was designed to support the growth of South West businesses through international trade. William went beyond the usual whistle-stop tour of emerging trends in technology, offering unique perspective on what companies need to know to remain competitive in the 21st century. William framed these insights in a compelling, entertaining and convincing manner, encouraging delegates to rethink their approach to consumer behaviour and psychology." - Jim, Business West
"William is a rare talent, cutting through the hype to reveal what is really round the corner." - Jo, Omnicom Group
"He delivered a really engaging talk that was well-received by the audience." - Nico, Media Futures
"I want to pass on my thanks for your highly appreciated contribution to the 2020 CILT Conference and for coping with the difficult environment of Zoom, which can be a very sterile stage without any audience reaction or interaction. The breadth of the topics covered came together really well within the theme of “route to zero” and your session was superb in adding to the overall debate which is something we will be progressing during this year through our policy groups and with Department for Transport. I very much appreciate you giving up your time to prepare, present and respond to questions and know the delegates and future viewers of the content will have found it to be really valuable. On behalf of the Institute, its members and myself, thank you for participating." - Kevin, Chief Executive, CILT
- 2017 - Judge at the WARC Innovation Awards
- 2010 - Managing Director of OnePoll
- 2002 - Founder and CEO of Next Big Thing
How to hire William Higham
Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring William Higham for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.
** We do NOT accept requests for autographs, signed merchandise, fan mail, birthday messages or any other non-commercial contact with the speakers or acts. Each speaker on the website may not have necessarily worked with Champions in the past but are known to perform such engagements within the industry.
